


Sensory Processing

by unreadmessages



Category: No. 6 - All Media Types
Genre: Bathing/Washing, Canon Compliant, Character Study, M/M, Mutual Pining, Nezumi Headcanons, Romance, being teenagers, bunker times, everyone is like oh reunion but i prefer their bunker moments more, if u squint, not each other but nez is in the tub so
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-22 04:27:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22709707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unreadmessages/pseuds/unreadmessages
Summary: Shion and Nezumi share a moment in the underground bunker as Nezumi preps for work later. Or, 'Shion doesn't realize tenderly watching someone shave is weird and Nezumi thinks feelings are icky but kind of sorta likes his company... Maybe.'Set sometime before the correctional facility.
Relationships: Nezumi & Shion (No. 6), Nezumi/Shion (No. 6)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 47





	Sensory Processing

**Author's Note:**

> hello i havent uploaded in forever aha but anyways i have never written for no.6 despite being a fan since i was 11 but it was really fun to write. also i forgot whether or not they actually have a bathtub in the bunker or if its just a showerhead.. but we can pretend <3 comments/concerns/suggestions r appreciated as always!! 
> 
> (this is more based on the light novel but anime/manga works just fine)

Something Shion begins to notice ever since joining Nezumi’s way of living in the West Block is how his senses seem to have been exposed to new smells and tastes and sounds, relishing in these newfound experiences. Even though they weren’t all quite _pleasant_ ones necessarily, it makes his sensory life in No.6 dull in comparison. 

Of course, this new thought doesn’t sit well with Shion at first, considering how one of the feelings he misses most is waking up in his home in Lost Town, the sound of Karan’s voice calling him downstairs mixed with the light waft of freshly baked goods. Despite how empty he had felt in that old attic room, each morning his mother’s bakery downstairs provided a loving reminder of the pleasantries in life, ones he would all too soon be ripped away from. 

In his defense, he wasn’t one hundred percent sure he would have ever experienced a scene like the one currently in front of him at his mama’s bakery. 

“Are you… shaving?” 

An exaggerated scoff. 

“Yes, it would seem that way. It would also seem that, in spite of his proper aristocratic role, Your Majesty persistently has no regard for the privacy of others.”

 _Or maybe it’s because of,_ Nezumi mentally adds. 

“You’re the one that asked me to bring in the towel.”

Nezumi seems to consider that for a moment. Or, at least, he’s lost in thought long enough to leave a noticeable pause in his otherwise constant stream of sly remarks. 

It was true. He had asked Shion to bring in the towel he had forgotten by the heater. It’s something Nezumi begins to notice after being exposed to Shion all day, how he’s getting too lost in thought, stressing over frivolous little things. It’s something that scares him but catches Shion’s intrigued gaze.

“Hmph,” is all Nezumi can muster out, as he takes the towel a little too forcefully from Shion’s hands. 

“I guess I just didn’t realize you have to upkeep your personal appearance as a stage actor...ess. It just doesn’t seem like something people would really care about,” Shion sheepishly explains.

Nezumi watches incredulously as Shion sits himself down next to the bathtub, obviously not having a single proper thought in that head of his that just _maybe_ he should go back outside. 

_Unbelievable_ , Nezumi thinks and bites back an exasperated sigh. 

Instead, he decided to humor Shion in this socially inappropriate setting, and settles back into the bathtub and tucks his legs back in, seemingly satisfied with his craftsmanship. He takes a strand of Shion’s almost transparently white hair and gives a stern yank, moving to lather his arms with soap next and ignores the other young man’s immediate complaint. 

“Yeah. Maybe not if I had your silky white hair, but I have black hair, and the contrast on pale skin is a little too much to bear for others. Or so I’ve been told. You really can’t underestimate how much people will bitch, no matter what their situation is.” 

Shion rests his head on the side of the tub, enjoying the comforting warmth it provides and offers a sympathetic smile. He’s too busy taking in the heavenly scent of the rose and bergamot oil blend Nezumi gets from who knows where to think of a proper addition to their conversation. 

Nezumi pays no attention, continuing to deftly brush the straight razor down his arms, careful to not create any unfortunate nicks. To Shion, it was like watching a ballet, and he was stuck stupidly in a trance watching him just as he would to a live rendition of Swan Lake. He watches him attentively, the way his damp hair looks in comparison to when it’s dry, how the shoddily installed lightbulb highlights the tips of his shoulders, the rhythm his chest moves with each delicate breath he takes. Nezumi mutely continues, completely uncaring and unacknowledging of Shion’s obvious prolonged gaze.

He’s uncaring, but not unknowing. It’s hard _not_ to notice, especially with how Shion’s warped perception makes everything he does seem like an orchestral performance. As if he likes him more than life itself.

And it’s not like Shion was concerned with Nezumi figuring him out, anyways. He was too enveloped in his own senses, too enthralled with experiencing something new, too in love with how Nezumi’s long eyelashes blinked away the mist that rose with the light steam from the bathwater. 

It’s only when Nezumi realizes Shion’s dumb smile hasn’t left his face this entire time that he splashes water on him and with glaring gray eyes, sternly orders Shion to, “get the hell out.” 

Shion makes some sort of sound as a rebuttal to now being lightly soaked in water, but is secretly happy he was able to get a view of the gray eyes he’s been enamored with since childhood. It was all he really needed to make such a scene feel complete. 

As he watches Shion take his leave ( _finally_ ), Nezumi continues his unpaid and laborious work. Somewhere, deep and unacknowledged within himself, he finds the idea of Shion being so enamored with him enjoyable. It was something he was so close to touching, something so appealing, something so desirable and yet so unattainable. 

**Author's Note:**

> oh its under 1k. my bad. i might add more/just upload a series of unrelated loosely fitting drabbles like this i really really love their 5 months in the bunker together like reunion is great but nothing quite like "what if we were 16 and stuck living in an underground bunker and we were both boys and fell in love"


End file.
